What You'll Never Be
by Captain Morrigan Savvy
Summary: Will Turner stumbles into Jack Sparrow's cabin one night after having a nightmare on their way to Tortuga. No slash.
1. Chapter 1

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Disclaimer: I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. It belongs to Disney and all those people. Though I do have a rather special relationship with Johnny Depp/Jack Sparrow... Anyways, on with the story...  
  
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"Will... Will..." The voice was new yet familiar as it called his name, and he followed the sound. He somehow felt a strong connection to the owner of this mysterious voice. He knew he had heard it before, but he could not think of where.  
  
As he rounded the corner, he set eyes on a young girl, no more than twelve years old. Her soft white dress billowed around her as golden light played off of her dark ringlet curls and chocolate brown eyes. The freckles scattered about her face accented her beautiful smile as he felt those eyes gently delve into his.  
  
"Will!" she called, a smile in her voice.  
  
"Elizabeth..." he whispered in reply.  
  
The sound of her laughter slowly reached his ears and she turned, her dress flowing silently in her wake. He took this as a signal to follow and began walking a few steps behind her. Her small, bare feet made soft padding noises on the wood floor. As he followed her, he watched her go through eight years' worth of changes over a time of about one minute. Her hair grew longer and lighter. She grew taller, and her body filled out in all the right places until it had taken on the form of a woman's. Her tight curls were replaced with silky golden waves. When she turned to glance at him over her shoulder, he saw that her freckles had vanished, leaving a smooth, flawless complexion in their place, slightly tanned by the Caribbean sun. Her full, pink lips were spread in a bright smile meant for him and him alone, her eyes dancing with mirth.  
  
His breath almost caught in his throat. She was so beautiful.  
  
She laughed merrily as she turned again, breaking into a jog. Her dress and hair danced playfully behind her. His pace quickened, but he did not run. The floor creaked under his feet. He marveled at her beauty and spirit.  
  
She abruptly disappeared from his sight when she suddenly rounded a sharp corner. Her laughter rang out again, calling to him.  
  
He turned the corner just as she had, but she was not on the other side. All that was there was a long, plain hallway with bare wooden walls. Exactly like the rest of this place, wherever he was.  
  
"Will!" It was her voice. Slightly different than the voice of her twelve- year-old self, but still undoubtedly hers. It came from his right, and he eagerly followed the welcoming sound.  
  
"Will!" her voice called again. Now it came from his left. It was everywhere. He continued to walk straight ahead, no longer sure which direction to take.  
  
"Will!" She sounded distressed this time, and his heart skipped a beat as fear held him in its icy grip. She was no longer calling for him to find her in a fun and playful way; it was no longer a game. She was calling for help. He felt like vomiting just to remove the rude obstruction of his frozen heart from his throat.  
  
"WILL!" She was screaming now. A long, loud, piercing scream of terror and agony. Her frantic, high-pitched voice surrounded his body and filled every corner of his mind, nearly drowning him.  
  
His legs automatically sprang into a run as he began to search recklessly for her. He turned corners and went through doorways, following the sounds of her hysterical screams.  
  
Her voice led him to a flight of stairs, which he eagerly leapt up, taking them two at a time. At the top he found yet another long, bare hall. This one did not even have doors along the sides; only one at the end, which was glowing faintly with an eerie, foggy white light. A shadow of her cries filled his ears, and he knew, inexplicably, that this was the door that would bring him to her.  
  
He bounded down the hallway, his long legs carrying him swiftly to the other end. He tore through the doorway without hesitation, but nothing could have prepared him for what he found inside.  
  
He entered the room at top speed, and his feet automatically stopped when his eyes met the most horrific sight he felt he would ever see. She was lying on her back, helplessly pinned to the floor by the large, filthy body of a sickening creature that could hardly be called human. The disgusting brute was breaking her, breaking her again and again. Grimy hands explored the most intimate areas of her body, exposing her and violating her in ways that no person should have to endure.  
  
He would kill this monster. He would kill him for hurting her.  
  
"Will, please! Help me!" She called feebly to him, her eyes pleading. Her hand inched towards him, but the revolting animal immediately snatched it back, grasping her wrist and dragging his horrible tongue across her palm before pinning her arm to the ground once more. A nauseating grin graced his ugly face as he raised a grubby hand and traced one dirty finger along the length of her neck, across her collarbone and down to her breasts, leaving a line of raw, burned skin in its path. She gave a weak scream of pain, trying to twist her way out from under him. But he was far too strong.  
  
"Ah, come on, precious," he growled lowly in her ear, "don't struggle, now." Her shrieks and thrashes only increased with these words. He lowered his polluted lips to her neck as his hands resumed roving over every part of her, marring her with burned handprints left in every place he touched. His tainted mouth left horrid, dark stains on her skin.  
  
Will could only stand and watch the horrific events unfold. He wanted so badly to move, to do something, to help her, but every time he tried he could not get his feet to budge, as though they were somehow attached to the wooden floor. He began to panic. He couldn't help her! He couldn't help her when she needed him the most. It was the worst feeling he'd ever experienced.  
  
The monster's mouth trailed down to Elizabeth's chest, leaving those marks like hideous bruises all over her. It was obvious that she was rapidly weakening from the pain he was inflicting upon her and her attempts to fight him off. Her screams had become small, nearly insignificant moans. She beat against his shoulders with closed fists as he dropped repulsive, wet kisses across her chest, but he was quick to seize her wrists and press them to the floor yet again, holding them until Will could smell the burning flesh. She let out another keening wail. "Will, please..." she whimpered. Her eyes slid closed. "I'm dying..." Her voice was so quiet, and then her struggles ceased.  
  
Will could take no more. He would not watch this foul beast ravage her limp body when she was powerless to defend herself. He reached across his waist and felt the cool, familiar handle of his dagger slide into his hand, unsheathing it in one swift motion. He quickly took aim and hurled it across the room. It landed square in the side of the monster's neck. The man froze in the action of leaning back down to Elizabeth's chest, and his hefty body rolled off of her, Will's blade embedded deeply in his throat. He was very dead.  
  
Will wasted no time in rushing over to Elizabeth. He could move again! He reached her in just a few short steps and quickly knelt beside her still form.  
  
"Elizabeth," he pleaded, pulling her broken body into his lap. He gently pushed a stray lock of hair out of her face, tucking it behind her ear with the greatest care. She looked so pale. A thin sheen of perspiration covered her features, her beautiful lips parted slightly and her eyes still hidden behind closed lids. His eyes traveled slowly down her body, assessing the damage. Angry red scars covered most of her, visible through the torn remnants of her dress.  
  
"Elizabeth," he called again, pressing a tender kiss to her forehead in an effort to rouse her. He could taste the saltiness of her sweat lingering on his lips. Her lashes fluttered gradually against her cheeks and her eyes opened wearily, filled with deep hurt and confusion until they landed on his face.  
  
"Shhh," he whispered, stroking his thumb over her cheek and giving her a shaky smile. She blinked slowly, melting into his embrace. "You're safe now," he murmured. His voice was low and reassuring, a warm and hypnotic melody soothing her into relaxation.  
  
She lifted her hand and touched his face, tracing her fingertips over his brow, down his cheek and across his lips, learning each of his features by heart. Her eyes closed again, and she gave him the slightest smile. "Good- bye, Will," she said in the faintest whisper. "I'll miss you..."  
  
"No, Elizabeth," he ordered, reaching up and wrapping her hand in his own. He would not let her give up. He could already feel tears stinging the edges of his eyes. "Stay awake. Stay with me."  
  
"Good-bye..." it was barely more than a tiny movement of her lips, but it was enough to silence him. No more than a heartbeat passed before her hand went limp in his. Her shallow breathing stopped.  
  
Will felt he would suffocate at that very moment. Winding vines of despair slithered out from his heart in all directions, falling into a convoluted heap in the pit of his stomach, running down his arms, snaking upwards to choke him around the neck until he wanted to scream to halt their progress. He pressed her wilted hand firmly against his chest and lowered his head in sorrow, letting his tears spill over and fall upon her lifeless body.  
  
"Elizabeth... no..."  
  
He watched as his tears splashed on her scorched flesh. The salty droplets spread over her, mending and healing the charred remains of her broken skin. He cried until there was not even a trace of a scar left on her, her beautiful body restored to its elegance and grace. But it was too late to save her. She was already long gone.  
  
He heard a dull thump and a creak behind him, raising his head and turning cautiously. He immediately jumped to awareness and his eyes enlarged as fear swept him up into its strangling hold once more.  
  
The monster was advancing on him, his yellow eyes wide and crazy, his rotten teeth bared. Blood poured from the gaping wound in his neck and he held Will's knife poised in the air, the blade still drenched in the same blood. He reached Will in a matter of seconds and plunged the dagger into the left side of his chest, before yanking it out and driving it in again. He stabbed him twice. Once for each half of his broken heart.  
  
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A/N: Hi guys. I just want to let you know that even though this is my first story on the site I've been reading stories on FanFiction.Net for a while now and I love you all! Like I said, this is my first post so please review and please be gentle! Next chapter should be up sometime soon if you guys liked the first.  
  
- Meggie  
  
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	2. Chapter 2

A/N: I think some people might have been confused about the first chapter, so in case you were, it _was_ Will's nightmare. Sorry I didn't clarify that earlier.

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Will awoke with a gasp, sitting bolt upright in his bunk. A shudder ran through his body as he inhaled in quick, short gasps, his mind plagued with images of Elizabeth drawing her last breath in his arms. His sweaty hands groped and pulled at the tangled sheets, his muddled brain fighting to ward off the taunting shadows of his nightmare.

His frantic eyes scanned the room, searching for some link to reality. The room was dark and the wooden walls seemed to close in around him, pressing his demons back onto him against his efforts to push them away.

_Oh, god. Not here. Please..._

_No. No. You're on the _Interceptor_._

_Why? Why am I here?_

_Jack Sparrow._

_Jack..._

_And __Elizabeth__.__ She's alive, kid, and she needs you._

_Elizabeth__... _

It was then he noticed that his face felt wet and slightly sticky. He lifted his shaking hands and wiped at his cheeks and temples, using his worn sleeves to clear away the moisture. His tears had been real.

_Elizabeth__._ He thought back to the last time he had seen her. In the middle of a crowded Port Royal street, chaos surrounding them but only each other existing in their eyes. Her golden hair was coming undone from the elaborate bun that half of it was drawn into, her night clothes and dressing gown in a flurry in her rush to keep up with the men pulling her along. His brush with death at the hands of one filthy pirate had caused his adrenaline to race, and watching her look back at him with wide, pleading eyes as two more of the disgusting beasts dragged her down the lane had only made it move faster. He saw her lips form his name, and he could almost hear her voice speak it as his entire world focused on her for that moment. He whispered her name in response and lunged forward as he made to go to her, but he was stopped when another pirate – one he was sure he had already killed – stepped into his path. He never did get his chance to try and save her then, for he was knocked out shortly after and didn't wake until the next morning, lying in the middle of the street with chickens pecking around his head.

She had asked him only hours before that fateful event if he remembered the day they had met. Of course he remembered. It would be terribly difficult to forget such a day as that, being attacked by pirates and saved by an angel. He remembered wakening violently at the feeling of a hand stroking his hair, immediately seizing the owner's wrist with a loud gasp. It was stupid, really. Her touch was gentle and kind; nothing to be afraid of. He was finally able to focus on her face as she introduced herself as Elizabeth Swann. He shakily stated his own name and promptly passed out again after she informed him that she would be watching over him.

His love for her had grown and changed over the eight years that had passed since then. That day, she had been a guardian to him, a sure promise of protection, and he had loved her for that. As time went on, he came to know her more and more; came to love her not as a protector but for who she was as a person. He learned over the years that she was a smart and beautiful girl with a fiery and rebellious spirit, always trying to break away from the restraining bonds of a civilization that demanded so much of her. He loved her smile, her rich brown eyes, her beautiful mind, her strength and ability to handle anything that was thrown at her. He loved everything about her.

All this time he had admired her, seemingly from afar. She seemed untouchable, though she was actually only just beyond his reach. He wanted so badly to confess his feelings to her, to tell her that he loved her truly and deeply with every part of himself. And he would've told her on several occasions, were he not always shot down by a society with strict and binding laws about love and marriage. He could never have Elizabeth. It was not _proper_ for a governor's daughter to be with a common blacksmith. So he was forced to endure having her dangled in front of him on a string, having her be cruelly pulled away every time he thought he might be getting close, driving him crazy. It killed him to know that he would never be with her.

So why was it, then, that just the thought of her eased all of his troubles? How could she drive him insane and calm his every nerve at the same time? Why was it that she made everything better even despite his bittersweet longing?

It was because he loved her. Will loved Elizabeth; it was as simple as that. Yes, he could never have her, but that did not change the fact that he loved her more than anything or anyone else. He would die for her, kill for her, kill himself for her. He would go to hell and back for her, and he knew that if he traveled round the whole world searching for someone else he could love the way he loved Elizabeth, he would never find another.

Which was why the thought of losing her was unbearable. She was his life support system. If she was gone, he would have nothing to live for; his life would end. He didn't know where she was right now. She was on the _Black Pearl_, but that was all he knew. She could be in a dark, damp cell, cold and alone. He didn't know how they were treating her, what they were doing to her. They could be beating her senseless, cruelly starving her, taunting and jeering at her with their twisted, ugly faces. Or they could be doing to her what had been done in his nightmare.

_Will, please! Help me!_

He feared so much for her safety, for her life. The pain of losing her would be ten times worse knowing that he might've saved her but didn't succeed. Equally bad was the thought that they were only using her for the purposes in his dream. A pretty girl, under their complete control. Easy to take advantage of the opportunity for pleasurable company. Then again, of course, they could've killed her already.

_Will, please... I'm dying..._

He had to get out of here. The room was dark and stifling and hot with his emotions. He didn't know where he would go, and he didn't have many choices being on a ship, but he could not stay in this room, where sounds and images from his nightmare snapped at his heels and would not leave him alone.

He scrambled out of bed as quickly as he could, swaying a bit on his feet as he adjusted to the rocking of the ship. He crossed the room and ambled out the door, emerging into the hallway with squinted eyes, still trying to adjust to the lack of light.

Elizabeth's screams haunted him as he walked along the hallway below deck, one hand touching the wall every so often since there were no lamps to guide him. He could see her face, her eyes holding so much pain and fear. He saw the monster's hand gripping her wrist until it burned; he saw the bruises on her neck. He saw her give up.

The ship suddenly pitched one way unexpectedly, propelling him into a door on his right. The weight of his body and the force of the impact was enough for the door to fly open, sending him tumbling. Elizabeth's body flashed before his eyes, dead and decaying, as he landed sprawled on the floor, painfully smacking his head against the hard wood.

_Will... I'm dead..._

Will pulled himself back up onto his knees, but could go no further than that, panting with pain and the disturbing images that filled his mind. Would they never leave him alone?

_She's alive. She's alive..._

_... How do you know?_

He slumped forward in defeat and despair. He did _not_ know.

_She could be dead. She could be dead and there is _nothing_ you could do about it. She could be DEAD..._

He could not help himself. He could not hold his emotions any longer. Tears rushed to his eyes, stinging and burning at the edges. And he let them fall.

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A/N: Please please please review!


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Firstly, a big thank you to everyone who has reviewed. Your comments were very much appreciated and really helped feed my desire to continue with this story. Thank you so much!!

Secondly, I would like to apologize in advance for this chapter. I was suffering the world's worst writer's block while I wrote it and I kinda lost some of my inspiration when I came up with an idea for a new story. I've realized that this chapter is rather corny and, well, it just sucks and I am very, very sorry.

And thirdly, I doubt that anyone would really care, but I am happy to announce that Johnny and I were joined in the bonds of holy matrimony on Wednesday, June 2 in the comfort of my own bedroom. My friend Leighann performed the ceremony, and then I did the same for her wedding to Orlando (though she had to divorce Dom first). We had a lovely honeymoon in Canada, and we even brought my friend Elaine with us (hi Leena! waves).

So enough of my pointless rambling and on to the final chapter of the story...

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Jack awoke to muffled sobs. He blinked his tired eyes and his face pulled into an expression of confusion as the sound registered in his sleepy brain. What in satan's name was someone doing sobbing in his cabin?

He pushed himself up onto his elbows, feeling the harsh wood of the bunk through the thin mattress. The room was almost completely dark. A thin sliver of pale moonlight slipped between the closed curtains, leading his eyes to the trembling figure hunched on the floor. Jack shook his dark head, trinkets jingling, and blinked a few more times to clear his foggy mind. And it came to him; there was only one person who would or could be here this night.

"Will?" the pirate barely whispered the boy's name, but Will jumped violently in surprise, inhaling a shuddering gasp and spinning around to face Jack. "What the bloody hell are you doin' out of bed?"

"I – I," Will stuttered, voice shaking like a leaf. Jack could now see the tears glistening on his face. "Elizabeth… she's…" Will choked on his words and dissolved back into harsh, quiet sobs, burying his face in his hands in shame.

Jack blinked dazedly. The boy was very upset about something, that was obvious, but there was not much the pirate could discern from the words "Elizabeth" and "she's" save that it must have something to do with the fair damsel that young Mr. Turner seemed to be so attached to. "Come again?" Jack prompted.

Will could only repeat the name of the girl whom he said he would die for.

_Good god,_ Jack thought to himself as he tossed his blanket off of himself and swung his legs over the edge of his bunk. _People these days... _He swiftly crossed the room and knelt in front of the troubled young man, dropping a hand on Will's shoulder and giving him a shake. He tried his best to keep the irritation out of his voice when he spoke.

"Will, lad, I can't know what the bloody problem is if you don't tell me using understandable English –"

Will interrupted Jack by simply lowering his hands enough to reveal his teary eyes. The look in them was enough to silence the pirate. There was pain there, deep pain, and there was fear as well. Something seemed to snap in Jack's shoulders and run down his arms, and before he could recognize what was happening he found himself embracing the boy before him, his fingers instinctively stroking the soft hairs at the back of Will's neck.

_Have you lost your marbles, man? What do you think you're doin'?_

_Shhh__, don't make this any more awkward for yourself._

"What if she's dead, Jack?" Will's shaky voice cut through Jack's thoughts, muffled in the older man's shoulder.

_So _that's_ what this is all about..._

"Come now, William, it'll be all right. She isn't dead, lad. I can promise you that. And if I'm wrong you can kill me for even saying it, –" Will shuddered "– but I do know one thing for sure. Barbossa and 'is crew took Miss Swann for a reason and it was not to kill her. Savvy?"

Will nodded against him.

When all was quiet again Will lifted his face from Jack's neck but did not leave the pirate's warm embrace, perching his chin on the older man's shoulder.

"Have you ever been in love, Jack?" he asked softly.

Jack hesitated only a moment to accommodate his surprise. "No, I can't say that I have. At least, not the same kind of love you be talkin' about."

Will sighed a bit and Jack could feel him smiling. "It's the best feeling in the world. It's like being able to fly but knowing that that one person will always pull you back before you get too close to the sun. And when she looks at you, you know that there is nothing you won't do to see her smile. You know that if you lost everything and the life you've built for years and years all crumbled to the ground in a single moment, you know that you could still be happy with nothing else as long as she's with you. Anywhere she goes you know you will follow because you are bound so strongly to her, it's like you can't exist without her. All you would be is gloom and misery if she was gone." He let out the tiniest laugh. "It's almost like being crazy. It's like being so crazy you spend a thousand rainy days standing in the cold until you become ill just to be near her."

Jack was silent as time slipped past them. Of course he had known that Will was profoundly smitten with the lovely Miss Elizabeth, but he hadn't realized, having never been in love himself, just how dependent the young blacksmith was upon the woman of his dreams. The pirate knew that it was rather difficult for most people to truthfully state that they would give their lives for another, but this boy's word seemed completely honest and the depth of his emotions was humbling. He really would die for this girl.

Jack patted Will gently on the back, the right words to follow the young man's heartfelt speech finally finding him. "We'll get yer bonny lass back, Will. Don't you worry."

Will pulled back from Jack's arms then, staring at the ground as he wiped the drying tears from his face before looking up at the pirate. "I'm sorry. I don't know what happened, I… I guess I just lost control…"

"'S all right, mate."

Will paused for a moment. "Thank you, Jack."

"Don't mention it," Jack murmured, his voice soft and low. Will smiled. "No, really, I mean it. Don't mention it." Will chuckled slightly and Jack smiled in return. "Now get back in yer bed before I put you there myself – and I don't mean tuckin' you in with a nice bedtime story, savvy?"

Both men rose from the floor. Jack sidled back to his bunk and placed himself again between the mattress and coverlet while Will headed for the door, pausing to take a last look at the pirate before he left. He could hear Jack snoring as soon as he had taken five steps from the room. Will smiled and shook his head as he walked along the dark hallway once more. Some things would never change.

-End-


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